Macarthur FC 2-1 Brisbane Roar
Mile Sterjovski (Macarthur FC):
"It was a tough game. I think Brisbane are a very tough team to beat. I was very pleased with the second half and felt like we possibly could have had another goal or two. The players had to be mentally strong today with the conditions and a lot of changes. I felt like they were on for the majority of the game, especially in the second half. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard and that's what we look for at this club. The scheduling for us hasn't been great in recent years and it's something I'd like to see reviewed."
Michael Valkanis (Brisbane Roar):
"Do you really think Macarthur dominated? They hit one ball over the top that we should have cleared and the second one we were pulling a jumper where we shouldn't have pulled a jumper. There were two penalties that happened for no reason. They'll quickly learn from that, because their mistakes shouldn't happen at the highest level. Giving away two cheap penalties shouldn't happen. We should have finished the game off. We didn't get three points so I'm not happy - that's it. We lost a game that was in our hands and that's frustrating. Today I believe we could have very had a penalty that was not checked, and it's like VAR is unplugged for Brisbane. I'm asking for some accountability. We have asked for a please explain to check all of these (non-penalty) incidents I'm talking about."
Western Sydney Wanderers 0-2 Auckland FC
Alen Stajcic (Western Sydney Wanderers):
"First half was very good, close to the best half of football we've played. We dominated a good team and should have put the game to bed, to be honest. First five to ten minutes of the second half wasn't too bad, they got a bit of a rub of the green and we didn't really find a way to come back from that which was disappointing. I thought for the first 55 minutes we were really good. We're creating chances - I think we've hit the post seven or eight times this season - and football is a game of inches. All you can do is keep working hard. We've dominated the three best teams in the league now. There are a lot of good things in our game and we need to find that final piece, which is the hardest part of the game."
Steve Corica (Auckland FC):
"We spoke about where we needed to improve in the second half and the boys did that. The subs were very good as well. Wanderers were very good in the first half but we gave them a little bit too much time on the ball. It caused a few issues to fix at half-time and I think we did that. The subs made a big difference in tough conditions. We knew we had quality depth players who could change the game and they definitely did. We had our home games early on and now it's all away but I'm looking forward to the challenge. We had a very good season away from home last year and we're continuing on. Next week is our first opportunity to see what (Sydney) are about. They're doing really well at the moment so it's going to be a good challenge for us."
Newcastle Jets 2-0 Sydney FC
Mark Milligan (Newcastle Jets):
"The performance for me was most impressive. We're starting to see real growth with and without the ball. We have challenged them over the last few weeks to take ownership of the football that they play and to drive it forward. I don't think we're there yet and there are ways to go, but a result like that helps us progress this process. Everyone sees the results but they don't see how hard these players work. It's about taking time to adapt to the way we want to work every single day. The way we want to play our game of football is extremely difficult and it's what they do away from the camera now that gets them to where they are now."
Ufuk Talay (Sydney FC):
"I don't think we started the game well and that crept through the whole 90 minutes. The boys that came on tried but I think they (Newcastle) had more desire than us and that was the difference. We'll go through the review of this one before shifting our focus to Auckland. We need to work out why the boys were quite lethargic from start to end. We had no energy. When Newcastle attacked we won the ball well and had moments to attack back but we didn't have the support of players and they were a bit isolated. The first or second pass often didn't stick and that allowed them to pin us in our box."
Melbourne City 0-1 Melbourne Victory
Aurelio Vidmar (Melbourne City):
"It's always difficult to lose at the end like that. I thought we were good for a goal or two in that first half. We were really threatening in the front third but just hadn't managed to put it away. A bit more even in the second half but we weren't as clinical, especially moving the ball forward. We tried to make some changes to no avail. It was one of those games that could have gone either way. We created some decent things in that second half, but we have to suck it up and move onto Macarthur on Tuesday."
Arthur Diles (Melbourne Victory):
"The boys have the freedom to go beyond the script when it comes to set pieces. It was a fantastic strike from Matty (Grimaldi). They've got the luxury to play it as they see it and feel it. We always encourage them to play it as they feel it and there was a reward on the end of it. There is a lot we have to look at tonight: it wasn't a polished performance from a football point of view. It was a typical derby where there was a lot of goalmouth action. Not outstanding football from us but we definitely worked really hard. We were resilient and had a super mentality."
Perth Glory 0-1 Adelaide United
Adam Griffiths (Perth Glory):
"Déjà vu. I definitely believe that we had enough chances to get something out of that game. I felt if we got one we would have got momentum and destroyed them, but it's just not happening in that final third. We have to regroup, look at how we improve and keep pushing towards improving in that area. The best way to find solutions is to convert those half-chances. I would say we had big chances to shift the momentum and mount the pressure. We need to improve in that final third."
Airton Andrioli (Adelaide United):
"It's good to get back in the wins. It's been a while since we got a result, especially away from home. Everything we spoke about this week was that it didn't matter how we did it. I think our first half was excellent. I'm extremely proud of the effort from the boys tonight. We expect (Goodwin) to be a player who can deliver those shots from outside the box. Hopefully that will help keep his confidence up because he's a very important player for us. The (missed penalty) was a very difficult moment for us. If we scored at that moment it would psychologically have been very difficult for them to come back from that. When we had a player sent off we had to defend deep and we did that really well."
Wellington Phoenix 3-1 Central Coast Mariners
Giancarlo Italiano (Wellington Phoenix):
"We've been moving along nicely in terms of performances, but just haven't been able to do it for 90 minutes consistently. Today I was disappointed that we let them back in the game just on the stroke of half-time. We worked so hard to get the lead and then gave it away, but in the second half I got the response I wanted. We did a couple of different things today that we executed well, especially on the run, which is something I've been frustrated with in the last few weeks. The boys were focused and gave everything today and I was very happy."
Warren Moon (Central Coast Mariners):
"We're more disappointed from the fact that I felt Central Coast Mariners were the better team going into half-time. We were more in control at that point. For the third goal we have to look at ourselves as it was pretty poor defending. For the second goal, I'm really confused right now about what the handball rule is right now. There was no opportunity for him (Will Kennedy) to move his hand and it was so close to where the ball was struck in proximity, but three weeks ago there's a ball from ten metres away that (WSW's Anthony) Pantazopoulos gets a hand on and it's not a penalty. We feel a bit aggrieved by that one player because I'm not sure what a player is supposed to do there. It was a key moment that turned the game."